Use the wiper fluid couple different times today and quickly noticed bad fluid odor that came into the cabin. Terrible stench. Never had this problem with other vehicles that I recall. Could something be loose?
Probably just the fluid itself. People say nice things about the smell of VW's branded washer fluid, maybe try a jug of that? The cabin air intake is directly beneath the right side windshield wiper, so it is pretty normal for the cabin to get a strong whiff of whatever your fluid smells like unless you switch to recirculate mode.
I'd have the dealer check it out. I use wipers / fluid regularly - almost every time I drive - because my neighbor's cat leaves paw prints on the windshield and also due to all the pollen this time of year. I've never noticed any odor and I'm almost never in recirculate mode.
Where any of those other vehicles Toyota with factory-fill washer fluid? Is the fluid on your gen 5 pink? I've got a bottle of Toyota Touch Windshield Washer Fluid; took a whiff, didn't seem to have any smell. Maybe something in the system reacting with the fluid?
That's an unfortunate design, being near the cabin intake. I'll look closer at the system later. Like I mentioned, I've never noticed this in any other car I've owned.
It's gotta be something with the dose of fluid in the car. You would really have to work to locate a passenger car that had its cabin air intake anywhere other than the cowling below the right side wiper- it's one of those things that is almost universal across brands and models.
